“I am left stranded on my bed with my independence stolen by Indigo and their carelessness. I cannot sit on my wheelchair without my cushion. Even though I have a disability, Indigo has left me disabled in the truest sense.” says Virali Modi.

This is what happened to a disability rights activist on 5th December 2023. She had a harrowing experience while flying . She was not only ‘forgotten’ in the plane by the cabin crew for more than 45 minutes  and had a tough time getting their attention but the airline also lost her special cushion, which is absolutely essential for her to sit for long hours.

This is by no means an isolated incident. Instances of  wheel-chair bound passengers with compromised mobility and passengers with special needs being  severely inconvenienced and even harassed, are neither new nor uncommon. These instances underline the lackadaisical attitude of customer-facing airlines staff, as well as their lack of professional training. They severely undermine basic human dignity of  persons with disabilities .It's a matter of shame for the country that  we are unable to ensure inclusive air travel for them.

There exist visible lacunae in the enforcement, implementation, and monitoring of the Accessibility Standards and Guidelines for Civil Aviation by air service providers (Link). These comprehensive standards and guidelines were developed by civil aviation agencies to ensure an equitable and inclusive access to air travel for persons with disabilities and reduced mobility. Published by MOCA in April 2022, they seem to exist only on paper. 

We would therefore request the Civil aviation authorities i.e. MOCA, AAI, DGCA to take the following actions, to ensure implementation of Accessibility Standards and guidelines.

1. Conduct a thorough audit of all airports across the country in line with the MOCA guidelines to check for gaps in implementation. It would be good to start with the bigger airports but  gradually cover all airports across India. And place these audit reports in the public domain. Create a system for punitive action to be taken for non implementation.

2. Conduct an  audit of the facilities/services  being provided by airlines for persons with disabilities and a review of  their staff training modules for handling them every 6 months. 

Not only should all these audit reports be placed in the public domain but there must be  a system for punitive action  for non implementation.

3. Create a dedicated grievance portal  for flyers with disabilities for registering complaints and their quick resolution.

Maintenance of human dignity is an integral part of our constitutional values and goals. It is essential to ensure that everyone, regardless of their physical abilities, has equal and comfortable access to transportation. We urge Ministry of Civil Aviation , Airport Authority of India and DGCA  to take required action to ensure proper implementation of these guidelines, along with an accountability mechanism for both airlines and airports. 

We urge everyone to  sign this petition to support the right of persons with disabilities  to  Travel with dignity.

   #MakeAirTravelInclusive        #EnsureAccessibleTravel      #DignityForPwds      #EnforceAccessibilityGuidelines